Competitors at the 2009 Mirror Worlds were greeted by twenty-five knots winds and huge seas on their arrival at the regatta centre this morning. With chances of racing looking particularly uncertain, the race committee sent a rib out to the racecourse at ten o'clock to accurately assess the conditions first hand. Having consulted the most up to date weather forecast, the conclusion was that the conditions were simply too adverse and racing was officially cancelled for the day. Hopes are high for a break in the stormy weather tomorrow and the plan at this stage is to attempt to sail four races starting promptly at 11.00AM.
Amongst the many visitors to the 2009 Mirror World Championship in Pwllheli is Johnny Bucknall, son of the original Mirror designer and TV DIY celebrity Barry Bucknall. He is in town for a couple of days to soak up the atmosphere of the World Championship and was clearly delighted to see so many people enjoying the Mirror experience. 'I was about seven when my dad produced the very original Mirror prototype. I recall that with input from Jack Holt, the final design, which was produced in conjunction with the Daily Mirror Newspaper, looked quite a bit different. Some of the new boats here look very racy and the photos from yesterday show how well the class has evolved.'
Class legend Guy Wilkins who literally did write the book on the Mirror Class, has made an unexpected return to Pwllheli. Guy was a competitor at last week's UK National Championship here in North Wales, but made the decision not to sail at the Worlds. However, having seen the fantastic sailing going on at the Worlds yesterday via the Official Worlds website, he realised he just had to be involved. So he quickly re-packed the boat, before making the trek back from London to Pwllheli and arriving here again this morning. Good decision Guy! It's good to have you back….
Justin Chisholm
The Australian teams competing at the Worlds are:
Father-and-son team of Paul and Austin Taylor, plus Lawson Taylor and Mitch Sainty from Princess Royal Sailing Club in Albany, WA.
Liam Wilson and Jessica Stout; Tom and Brittany Henderson; and Rex and Andrew Henderson of Royal Freshwater Bay Yacht Club in Perth.
Anita Scott-Murphy and son Ben Cruse of Williamstown.
